4 Things to Know About LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures! #LEGOFreemakerEvent

LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures is premiering on Monday, June 20, 2016 on Disney XD. We had an early screening of the first episode and got to sit down with Executive Producers Bill Motz and Bob Roth.

LEGO was everything when I was a kid. We had huge bins of LEGO bricks and my brother and I would spend hours constructing (then deconstructing) entire cities. Only one thing could beat LEGO for my brother, and that would have been Star Wars. He was (and still is) a huge fan and I can't help but love the series. In fact, one of my first childhood memories is playing with my brother's Ewok Village play set. I'm sure I wasn't supposed to be touching it, but I just couldn't help myself.

My almost 4 year old son is just graduating from DUPLO blocks to LEGO bricks and even though he's never seen Star Wars he absolutely LOVES it. We've got the t-shirts, Darth Vader pajamas, light sabers - all of it, but he just hasn't been able to sit through the movies because his attention span is just a wee bit too short. That's why I'm beyond excited for LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures, the new animated series coming to Disney XD.

During our #FindingDoryEvent trip we got a very special treat. We got to see the very first 30 minute episode of LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures. I wasn't really sure what to expect or if I'd be interested in the show since I haven't seen every Star Wars movie, but as soon as it came on the screen I could tell it was going to be good. This all new series features many of the Star Wars characters that we already know and love, but it also brings forth some new heroes and villains. Set in between the events of "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Return of the Jedi," this series introduces us to the Freemakers, a family of sibling scavengers that scour the galaxy to repair vehicles and create new ones with the useful debris they find. You'll meet Rowan Freemaker, a high energy 12 year old who's always ready for adventure (voiced by Nicholas Cantu), his older sister Kordi (voiced by Vanessa Lengies) and his older brother Zander (voiced by Eugene Byrd). The two older siblings definitely have their hands full making ends meet and looking after Rowan.

Adventure awaits in the very first episode and the mix of adult and child humor is perfection. Almost immediately we see Rowan getting into trouble the way that young, curious boys often do. While trying to get his siblings out of a jam he stumbles upon the Kyber Saber, the very first saber created that has some pretty serious implications if it gets into the wrong hands. I don't want to give too much away, but I foresee some epic battles between the light and dark sides.

Check out the trailer here:

We also got to sit down with Executive Producers Bill Motz and Bob Roth after the screening and got to pick their brains about their new series. Here are 3 take-aways that you should definitely know about LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures.

1.) The characters in LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures are loosely based on Bob Roth's sons. 

Zander is very similar to Roth's 14 year old son who's incredibly enthusiastic about car and motors. He's a "gear head" with a very good heart. When you see LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures, you'll notice that Rowan is fun and energetic, but he also has a pretty short attention span. Roth told us that Rowan is based on his 12 year old son that has ADHD.

Bill Motz poignantly commented, "In deciding that we wanted to Rowan to have that characteristic [struggles with focus due to ADHD], academically it's always a struggle. A kid like that is always going to faced with, "Why are you focusing in school? Why aren't you doing these things?" You know, it's just hard. It's hard as a parent too to have a kid that's struggling with those things. I love that fact that you [Roth] made your son who struggles with that the hero of our show."

2.) They have to get a lot of approvals from Lucasfilm before introducing new elements into the series. 

LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures is now a part of Star Wars history. That's pretty heavy stuff! As you can imagine, the people behind Lucasfilm want to keep the purity of Star Wars intact so there is approval process for pitching new story ideas. This also prevents duplicate or competing elements from occurring in the newer Star Wars films.

 

3.) Nicolas Cantu (who voices Rowan) thinks that he might as well retire now. 

We also got to interview Nicolas Cantu, who may be the most charming 12 year old I've ever met. We asked him what it's like to be part of the Star Wars legacy now and he said, "This is a big thing for me. Never have I ever thought as a child, "Oh I'd love to do something with Disney, oh I'd love to do voice overs. But, like STAR WARS?! LEGO?! It's a dream come true. It's pretty much every kid's dream. Ever. Being lucky enough to have this opportunity is really amazing. It's the whole package. Disney Show. Lego. Star Wars... having a toy of me... I might as well just retire."

I'm telling you - this kid is one to watch!

4.) LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures toys are already in stores!

You won't see "The Freemaker Adventures" listed on the box since everything is just branded "Star Wars," but you'll see the characters and their vehicles. According to Bob Roth, "That is a crazy moment. I've bought a lot of LEGO toys, I've bought a lot of Star Wars toys. Walking into a store and saying 'Oh yeah, there's the starship we created!'"

You can get the LEGO Star Wars Eclipse Fighter and the LEGO Star Wars StarScavenger on my affiliate Amazon.com. My son will be receiving these for his 4th birthday next week, which also happens to be the premiere date for LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures, and I can't wait to see his reaction!

Be sure to tune in to Disney XD on June 20th at 10:00 EST
to see LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures!

LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures / Disney XD Website / Disney XD on Facebook

Check out my coverage of the Finding Dory world premiere and review!